Hyundai Motor succeeded for the first time in joining the top 40 global brands as ranked by Interbrand, a leading global brand consultancy, on Thursday.

The Korean carmaker ranked 40th in the latest Best Global Brand report by Interbrand, which identifies and examines the 100 most valuable global brands every year.

Last year, Hyundai ranked 43rd. Its smaller affiliate Kia Motors also saw its ranking rise nine notches to 74th place this year.

In 2005, Hyundai became the first Korean carmaker to be ranked on the renowned list. Since then, its brand value has surged to $10.4 billion from $3.5 billion. 

Among automotive brands alone, Hyundai came in seventh, outpacing German luxury carmakers like Audi (No. 8) and Porsche (No. 10). Japan’s Toyota topped its rivals, followed by Mercedes-Benz and BMW.

Kia, which joined the top 100 list in 2012, recorded $5.4 billion in brand value.

“We have ramped up efforts to deliver special values to customers beyond selling more cars,” said a Hyundai official. “We will continue to pour our resources into better communicating with our customers.”

Meanwhile, Samsung Electronics ranked seventh among the most valuable companies by brand value this year. Its brand value rose 14.8 percent to $45.5 billion from a year ago.

By Lee Ji-yoon (jylee@heraldcorp.com)